Geek 2.0

Taking the Season Off

2006-12-25T18:12:00.000-05:00

I will be taking the Holiday season off from blogging. I will spending my time with family and on vacation. If I can I will try to make a few posts, between school and the holiday season I have enough already. You can always email me at mcampbell@live.com
I look forward to blogging in latter months.

Happy Holidays,
Matt

We Moved...

2006-12-19T23:55:00.000-05:00

http://geek20.wordpress.com/

Windows Live Mail

2006-11-26T20:13:00.000-05:00

As you may know I use Windows Live Mail to access and send out mail messages. Well, tonight was the first time I saw this dialog message:

You don't know how much this ticks me off, I was actually enjoying actually being able to use a browser other than IE to access any Microsoft content on the web. It says 1.5 but everyone I know is using 2.0. I should check and see what happens if I change the user agent to IE. But come on and get with it Microsoft.

*Update* Changing the user agent does not work, I guess I will have to use IE :(

Screenshots Of Office 2007

2006-11-12T16:42:00.001-05:00

I had a chance to check out the Final version of Office 2007 and I took a few screenshots that are located over at Flickr.
I will post a review of the screenshots later but you can just check out the photos at my Flickr photo set.
By the way these are different screenshots than any found elsewhere I took these screenshots myself. These screenshots are of Office 2007 Enterprise Edition. Also, the white at the bottom of some photos is where the taskbar was cropped out.

Installed Ubuntu 6.10 Server

2006-10-28T23:20:00.000-04:00

Today I just converted my home mail server to Ubuntu 6.10 code name: "Edgy Eft". Coming from Windows Server 2003, it was quite a change. For one thing there is alot of command line scripts to enter in. The overall install was fairly easy. I configured my mail server to a max. I used Postfix,Courier IMAP,MySQL,Amavisd-new, SpamAssassin,ClamAV,SASL,TLS,SquirrelMail and Postgrey. Let me tell you that is the last time I'm going to touch that server, considering how long it took me to configure all the settings. I don't think it's a bad server option though people tend to lean to RedHat. If your considering downloading Ubuntu you might want to wait a few days if you perfer FTP and HTTP. The only way to get it fast is through Bittorrnet.

If you're looking for a good deal on customized desktops and laptops that run Ubuntu check out http://system76.com/

Exploring Linux

2006-10-26T23:06:00.000-04:00

Want to see what all the hype is about Linux? Well, then read on.
I'm sure you've seen countless articles on how Linux is great and countless manuals on how to use Linux. When you see those you probably think "That's way over my head" or ' I don't have time to learn another OS". Well, it doesn't have to be hard at all.

I can tell you when I started with computers years ago I never read a manual on how Windows works or how to use the Windows OS. The way I learned it was by exploring and clicking on things. If I would of read a book on how to use Windows and how it operates I would probably still be reading it today. I agree, there are alot of things to learn about an Operating System but to learn the basics is not that hard. I've been a Windows user all my life and I still haven't explored everything to the OS and never will.

With that said, don't be afraid to try Linux. There are alot of good distros for beginners to Linux which I will discuss below. When you download an ISO and Burn it or use it in a Virtual Machine, Just start clicking on menus and taking a look around at different programs and menus. If you want to read a manual go ahead. Most people learn by interaction and not reading. I guarantee you if you just explore and do this on a daily basis you will become fairly familiar with Linux.

Their are several good distros or Distributions for first time Linux users. Some of them are listed below.

Ubuntu
Fedora
openSUSE
Mandriva

Many other distros can be found at:
http://distrowatch.com/

If you're looking for tutorials or software the best place would be to check out the Distributions website or community forums.

Have fun exploring Linux!

Vista Kernel API?

2006-10-25T00:01:00.000-04:00

There has been or I have been having confusion on the Vista kernel situation. I've heard from many sources that the kernel will be locked down from any third party, that's why Symantec and Mcafee have gone crazy. But, Steve Gibson mentioned that Microsoft will only open up the kernel to other parties through an API and that API will only be used on the x64 Windows Vista. I would really like to know what Microsoft is going to do. I don't see why Microsoft would release an API. Microsoft is doing a very smart thing by locking the kernel down.
By the release of the API to security companies they are opening the kernel up to the hackers and other nasty rootkits and malware. It would be very smart to lock the security companies out of the kernel and to only keep the kernel open to themselves. It's a win-win situation on Microsoft's part, they are able to keep the hackers, and rootkits out and also beat other security competitors by Windows Live OneCare only having access to the kernel. It will be very interesting to see what Microsoft does here.

A (Video) Look at the Zune

2006-10-24T23:45:00.001-04:00

Robert Scoble just released a video interviewing the Product manager of the Zune team Matt Jubelirer. They explore and talk about some basics of how the Zune works and what features are available. Scoble points out one thing in the video that is very cool and that is the Subscription service that the Zune Marketplace will have. Unlike other services *cough* *cough* iTunes you will be able to purchase a subscription for 14.99 a month and will be able to download as many songs as you like from the “millions” of songs available in the Zune Marketplace. One thing funny I find in this video is that they can’t find another Zune to demonstrate sharing music between players, yet their at the Zune Headquarters. Though through some parts of the video you want to fall asleep as the Product manager goes on and on about experience and the community aspect of the Zune, overall it’s a good look at the Zune Player. Also, the Zune is to hit stores the 14th of November.

Spreading RSS

2006-10-24T20:35:00.000-04:00

I have seen many articles around the Internet saying that RSS has failed and that RSS is only for the Tech savvy geeks out there. Take this article for instance.

I agree most of the people that use RSS are the savvy “Geek” type people. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We as in people doing podcasts and blogs and the like, need to share the knowledge of what RSS is. Because RSS is one handy thing and can help many non Geek people. Also I believe that the new RSS capabilities built into IE7 will help those new to RSS. I’m so glad that Microsoft and the IE team have built these capabilities into IE7.

But most of all the people that publish this content need to share the knowledge to these people that have not discovered the magic of RSS.

For a follow up on IE7 and RSS check out this Channel 9 Video that interviews people from the IE7 RSS Team.

Paying to be dugg, Come On!

2006-10-08T00:29:00.000-04:00

This post just blows me away. Why in the world would you pay someone to digg one of your stories? If you are doing this you are missing the whole point of digg. No one is going to read the story unless it interests them, they are not going to read it because of how many diggs it has gotten. This is just ridiculous and just plain stupid of whoever is doing this.

Netscape 8.0

2006-10-01T19:35:00.000-04:00

I recently gave the new Netscape Browser a spin. I remember Netscape being the browser that everyone used now it's either FF, IE, or Safari. Well to be honest with you I was very surprised on the outcome I had.

First off, there are so many features included with Netscape 8.0, not to the point of bloatware though. Lot's of customizations and really easy, and good to look at interface. On setup, you have the option of using the old type interface or the new stylish interface. I choose the Stylish one.

The UI is wonderful and Easy to use.

Security Center

One of the best additions to Netscape is the Security Center. The security center is a very simple thing, it alerts and scans for phising attacks and know adware on a site a reports it to you. Either by the tab or bottom right of the browser. The security center also features a Malware, Spyware, and Adware scan that works fairly well.

Spyware Scan

Engines

Netscape allows you to pick which engine you would like to use to display webpages. Either IE or The Mozilla Engine. Which is a great feature.

You can choose which engine you would like to use by clicking on the Firefox Drop-Down menu.

Sidebar

The sidebar has some really cool features including an AIM addon.

Conclusion:

Other than the great UI, the Customizations, and which Browser engine to use the Netscape browser is not up to par. The only reason that I'm not going to be using the Netscape Browser is the aspect of AOL. As you have seen lately that AOL is not doing very well with Security and Privacy Issues, and this Netscape browser was built with AOL as it's the core foundation. But overall if your not to worried about that, it's a solid browser.

Ready to Download?

Download Here

Spam Filters: A Comparison

2006-10-01T13:01:00.001-04:00

I've talked alot about spam and spammers lately so I thought I would compare some of the best Free ones.

Spamihilator

Spamihilator works between your E-Mail client and the Internet and examines every incoming E-Mail. Useless spam mails (Junk) will be filtered out. This process runs completely in the background. Spamihilator uses Bayesian Filtering to filter out Spam. One of the great things about Spamihilator is that you can use plugins. Plugins are listed on there main page. After downloading Spamihilator it will take about two weeks for it to become fully trained.

POPFile

POPFile is an automatic mail classification tool. Once properly set up and trained, it will scan all email as it arrives and classify it based on your training. You can give it a simple job, like separating out junk e-mail, or a complicated one—like filing mail into a dozen folders.

POPFile is a spam filter that is setup using your web browser it uses a proxy to filter spam.

SpamBayes

The SpamBayes project is working on developing a statistical (commonly, although a little inaccurately, referred to as Bayesian) anti-spam filter, initially based on the work of Paul Graham.

SpamBayes also uses Bayesian Filtering and also uses a proxy. There is also a plugin for outlook avaliable.

There are many spam solutions out there.

I have found using ClarkConnect, GMail, Spamihilator, and Tinymailto has eliminated most of my spam. ClarkConnect is a great Linux Server product that I will talk about later. To find out more Information check out this podcast.

Technorati tags: Security, Spam, Spam Filter, ClarkConnect, SpamBayes

Zero-Day Flaw In Firefox

2006-10-01T12:16:00.001-04:00

ZDNET is reporting that an attacker can take control of your Windows, Apple, and Linux computer by the use of malicious JavaScript. This is a fairly new flaw, and there is not much assurance if this is true or not.

But to be safe,

The only fix at the moment would to disable JavaScript. To disable JavaScript in Firefox go to tools>>options>>content>>uncheck enable JavaScript.This will probably make alot of sites break in that case use NoScript a browser extension where you can choose what sites use JavaScript, and what sites don't use JavaScript or temporarily enabling JavaScript for a site.

By doing the steps listed above you will be protected against this Zero-Day and other unknown JavaScript exploits.

Important IE and Windows Patch

2006-09-29T19:59:00.000-04:00

Details: Buffer overflow in Vector Markup Language (VML) library file used by Microsoft Internet Explorer and Outlook.

Description:
Using IE and Visiting a website with the file will automatically download malware onto your computer without your knowledge. Even an Up to date patched machine can be infected. As of a few days ago, Microsoft released a patch available at update.microsoft.com
or http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/925568.mspx
Be sure and update your computer if you are running Windows XP.

A demo video of what the Vulnerability can do to your machine
is available at this website.

Post On Forums? Here's ATip

2006-09-29T19:19:00.000-04:00

Here is a tip on how to prevent and improve your posting on public forums.

How to prevent Email Spam
Most of us have found posting your own email address on a forum is a bad idea. For instance someones giving out GMail invites and I just don't have one yet, and I really want one, so I post my email address me@hotmail.com.
Hoping that I'll get that GMail invite, well you might just get that and a little extra spam.

I have seen this every where and this is one of the main reasons you have spam in your Inbox. Other techniques I've seen have been: "me(at)hotmail(dot)com","me--at--hotmail--dot--com", yeah that might work sometimes but spammers have caught on to that. If you want to be sure to prevent spam from showing up in your Inbox try http://tinymailto.com/
Tinymailto is a great service that turns your email address into a url, and adds a captcha to that page to prevent bots and spammers from sending you spam.

So for instance I want to post my email address on a forum so I surf over to http://tinymailto.com/ and create an account and provide my email address and them pick a url for instance "tinymailto.com/me" so then I post that link into the forum post instead of my email address. So when someone clicks on that link, it will take them to a page that has a captcha and after successful entry then your email address will be shown to that person giving out the invites.

It really has worked for me and I get very little spam now.

While I've been talking about spam and spammers recently, I'm going to put up a post soon on some free Spam solutions to help prevent that spam. Look for it! Let me here your comments on any spam software you've used by using the submission forum. Submit by clicking: "Want to submit something" on the right hand column.

Website Update and Situation

2006-09-29T19:02:00.000-04:00

As I posted a few days ago that I opened a new website which included a Linux and Security blog, photos, forum, and security news. Well, come to find out that the host that I was using was a known spam company. So never use 555mb.com,122mb.com, or lxhost.org as they are spammers. I also wasn't able to login and my SQL Database became corrupt mysteriously. So now I'm going to have a tag for all security content and that tag will be "Security", so you can find those post's easier. I'm working on hosting through Godaddy and setting up a site and will let you know when I launch that site. So, In the meantime I will be only posting here no more at my old blog. Thanks!

New Security Fix Website

2006-09-25T01:13:00.000-04:00

I will now be putting most of my time and effort into a daily and weekly website that is aimed at Home and Average computer users on what patches and what they need to due that week, to keep there computer safe. I will look at what patches and other tweaks to keep there information secure. Look for it real soon!

Take advantage of all Web 2.0 Content

2006-09-22T19:43:00.000-04:00

Here are a few sites that list the most popular content form very popular and well know sites. One more thing to check in the morning along with your email:

THE WEBLIST .NET
Link
"What People are Clicking on Today"

Popurls.com
Link
"Popular urls to the latest web buzz"

Original Signal-Technology
Link
"Transmitting Tech"

Original Signal
Link
"Transmitting Web 2.0"

Ubuntu Suprised Me

2006-09-20T23:21:00.000-04:00

I recently installed Ubuntu Linux on an older Intel Celeron machine and I got Automatix up and installed codecs, apps, and so forth. I've got to say that it is wonderful. It could be a bit faster if I ran in on my main machine, but works faster than Windows. I used a very, very simple Autmatix install.
One of the easiest I've found only three Terminal Lines. I'm really thinking about switching from Windows XP on the Main machine I'm using now and goto Ubuntu. The main reasons I'm not is: 1. I've customized every thing on the computer now and to start over, I just see no point. 2. My ATI card is having problems with Ubuntu. 3. There are so many apps that work on Windows and not Ubuntu. 4. I'm also waiting to see what Vista is going to be like. I guess I should read this article again.

Daily Update

2006-09-20T23:15:00.000-04:00

School has now gotten to be very busy, now that I'm the Cross Country manager. Being Cross Country manager con sits of helping with scoring, setting stuff up, cleaning up and writing down times. Usually on days of CC meets I won't get home till around 8 o'clock. It was really quite funny how I got to be the Cross Country manager. I was just walking down the hallway and our Coach hollered to me and asked me to be the manager and I said sure. So, now I will be traveling with them on the road, Helping out.

Office 2007 Technical Refresh Now Avaliable

2006-09-14T17:41:00.000-04:00

Microsoft Office 2007 Technical Refresh build is now available for download from here . This is an update build to Beta 2 so you will need to already have Beta 2 installed to use it. As, I've heard there is only minor bug fixes and other minor UI changes and the ability to run on Vista RC1. I have not looked at it yet. I will post my results after I take a look at it. I'm not expecting much more than from the Original Build (Beta 2).
Check it out:
Download Link

Apple: Shame On You

2006-09-14T16:49:00.000-04:00

Apple just announced there new addon to there product line called yep you guessed it iTv. iTV is a small box that can contain media that hooks in with iTunes, Your iPod, and your TV. Basically like Windows MCE but in a portable box. The cost of iTv was announced at $299. But the thing about it is that it looks exactly like Windows Media Center Edition. Take a look at the screenshots below and tell me what you think.

Apple iTV

Windows Media Center Edition (MCE)

So don't tell me that Microsoft Copies everything Apple, that is complete BS.

Watch the Presentation of iTV by Steve Jobs here

Open Source Software: Why To Use

2006-09-12T01:15:00.000-04:00

I've metioned this before but haven't really talked about it in detail. Open Source software is the thing now. Why? It's Free, It works, Works better than lots of other apps that you have to pay for, and it's more secure. I believe that we will see a big boost in popularity with Open Source Software in the next few years. People are fed up with buying these expensive, bloated software applications.

Here are some reasons to use Open Source software:
(Feel free to add any into the comments)

1.Lots of times it's more secure than other closed source applications.
2.It's Free-The best part
3. We trust it because it's open source and anyone can view the source code
4.Reliable

I've mainly switched to Open Source software because software has gotten to be bloated with Junk and Crap I don't need. I recently downloaded Real Player to watch a real player file. It was just miserable the default settings were to change the file associations with all media files, wanted to install weather bug. That's why I enjoy freeware such as RealPlayer Alternative and Quicktime Alternative available at filehippo.

Look at this chart and tell me how many Open Source apps you find:
http://www.thepcspy.com/articles/other/what_slows_windows_down/2

Another page to check out if you can't find an alternative to that paid application that you love check out this list. Your bound to find something useful.

Second Life Database Hacked

2006-09-09T00:07:00.000-04:00

I just received and email in my inbox regarding that the Second Life Database was "Breached" with an "Zero-Day Exploit" through third-party software.

The Email Reads:

Hello Second Lifers,

As announced on our website at http://secondlife.com/corporate/bulletin.php and corporate blog at http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security, Second Life discovered an attack on our servers on September 6, 2006. The full security bulletin is reprinted below, followed by a FAQ that includes important security advice for our community.

===================
SECURITY BULLETIN

*SAN FRANCISCO, CA. (September 8, 2006)* - Linden Lab reported today that it is notifying its community of a database breach, which potentially exposed customer data including the unencrypted names and addresses, and the encrypted passwords and encrypted payment information of all Second Life users. Unencrypted credit card information, which is stored on a separate database, was not compromised.

The breach was discovered on September 6, 2006 and promptly repaired. The company then launched a detailed investigation that revealed an intruder was able to access the Second Life databases utilizing a "Zero-Day Exploit" through third-party software utilized on Second Life servers. Due to the nature of the attack, the company cannot determine which individual data were exposed. The company's technical investigation is ongoing.

"We're taking a very conservative approach and assuming passwords were compromised and therefore we're requiring users to change their Second Life passwords immediately," said Cory Ondrejka, CTO of Linden Lab. "While we realize this is an inconvenience for residents, we believe it's the safest course of action. We place the highest priority on protecting customer data and will continue to take aggressive measures to protect the privacy and security of the community."

Linden Lab advises all users to take appropriate precautions against misuse of personal information. To reduce the risk of fraud, Linden Lab will not contact individuals by phone or any other method asking for private information unless it is in response to an inquiry from the individual user.

===================
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: I can't log in to Second Life. How can I regain login access?

A: As a security precaution, all Second Life account passwords have been invalidated. You need to establish a new password in order to log in. You can receive instructions for changing your password by visiting http://secondlife.com/password. Please note that we are updating the password request process - if you have recently tried that page and could not change your password, please try again.

Q: Was my account information compromised?

A: We discovered that a database was accessed by the intruder, and we are able to determine the aggregate size of the data that was downloaded through the intrusion. The database accessed includes customer account information, including Second Life account names, real-life name and contact information in unencrypted form. Account passwords and payment information (consisting of credit card numbers and Paypal transaction IDs) are stored in this same database in encrypted form. However, there is no way to identify which data were accessed at the level of individual users, only the aggregate size of the downloads returned from the intruding database queries. We are conducting further investigation to try to determine the class of data exposed.

Q. Is my information still at risk from another attacker?

A: The compromised system was rebuilt and made more secure. We will be announcing additional plans for security improvements in a post to come on our blog, at http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security.

Q: Should I be concerned that encrypted password and encrypted payment information may have been exposed? Is the encryption unbreakable?

A: We use an MD-5 hash (scramble function) and salt (additional data) to encode passwords and payment information, an industry standard technique that is commonly regarded as difficult to defeat. However, no hash or encryption is unbreakable, given enough time and computing power. If you believe that you may be the victim of credit card fraud, you should contact your credit card company. If you use your Second Life password on other websites, online services, or any other services, you should change the password on that service as well. You can find additional tips for protection of your identity online at http://www.privacy.ca.gov/sheets/cis1english.htm.

Q: What kind of attack was used to gain access to the Second Life databases? Has the identity of the attacker been established?

A: We have gathered a significant amount of information regarding the attack and the attacker. However, because the investigation is ongoing, we cannot provide very detailed information regarding the type of attack or identity of the attacker. We can disclose that the intrusion path took advantage of a "zero-day exploit" in third-party web software.

Q: What was the timing of the attack and Linden Lab's investigation?

A: Our forensic investigation began on September 6, 2006. Based on this investigation, the intrusion attempts may have started as early as September 3, 2006. However, we have not found evidence of successful database access occurring before September 5, 2006. On September 6, 2006, unusual activity in our database logs revealed the attack to Linden Lab, and we investigated, found and closed the intrusion on the same day. At that point, there was no evidence that databases containing customer identity information had been compromised. For the following two days, the focus of our investigation was to determine the extent of the database access and the nature of the data downloaded from our system. On September 8, 2006, we concluded that there was a substantial likelihood that customer account information could have been accessed. The investigation is ongoing and we will report further results as they become available at http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security.

Sincerely,

Linden Lab and the Second Life team

Links Regarding The Matter (Not Very Many since this was just released like eight minutes ago)

http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security
http://secondlife.com/corporate/bulletin.php

Slowing down on the posting

2006-08-23T00:20:00.000-04:00

I'm not going to be posting as much now that I'm back in school.I will try and do my best to post as much as I can but I can tell you it's
not going to be alot. If you have any questions email or Im me to the right.
I added spam and bot protection to my email address so you will have touse a
captcha to get my email address. If you have any stories to submit to me please use the link to the right to do so. Thanks.